The Looking Glass
by theliterarydominatrix
Summary: Twilight only flipped. What if Bella and her parents were the vampires instead of the Cullens? How would Bella handle the temptations that Edward faced in Twilight? More worrisome, will flaky harmless Renee be as harmless as a vampire?
1. Bad Reputation

Twilight and all its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. My warped view of the story belongs to my imagination.

I have to give a special thanks to my beta and best friend, perpetualfangirl. Without her this story would have never been created and I would have never gotten the balls to post it.

Checkout her blog at perpetualfangirl(dot)blogspot(dot)com

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BPOV: I sat in my car glaring at the stone building. I was about to have another "fresh start" with nothing fresh about it. Here I was about to start my first day, yet again. I've had so many first days at so many high schools that they all seemed to blur together in my memory. I had enough experience with high schools to know they were all exactly the same. They all had the same ridiculously strict teacher. They all had the same teacher who cared too much about making friends with the students. They all had the same teacher who just did not give a damn anymore, whom I always empathized with. It was exactly the same with the student body. Each school had its share of jocks, geeks, cheerleaders, over-achievers and stoners. They were all the same no matter where my family moved. By the mass of students loitering in the parking lot, I knew Forks High school would not be any different.

The mass began to vacate the parking lot which must mean school was about to start. I slipped out of my mini coop which I had parked in the far corner of the lot in an attempt to avoid as many people as possible. Then I took a steadying breath as I headed to what had to be the school office. The few students lingering in the parking lot turned to stare at me as I walked by them. I rolled my eyes. The first week of school was always the worst. As if it was not bad enough that would I attract attention by being the new girl, that attention would only be magnified when everyone in the school immediately found me stunning. This was not my vanity speaking. It was simply a truth. I certainly took no pride in something I had no control over. At this moment, it was going to be a nuisance. For the next week, I would have the coveted honor of being the entire school's shiny new toy.

I entered the office and the secretary behind the desk looked awed as she gawked at me. Yep, the ENTIRE school's shiny new toy. I did not have to feign impatience as I stood there waiting for her to come to her senses.

"I-i-i-is there something I can help you with?" the secretary asked. She stumbled over her words as her embarrassment over being caught staring battled with her eagerness to win favor with the beautiful creature in her office.

"Isabella Swan," was my only reply. I could always count on brusqueness to put people off. When the secretary began to look confused, I added "new student" in a tone the implied she was stupid.

"Oh yes," she said with chagrin, "I have your schedule right here."

As she searched through the papers on her desk, she prattled on about my teachers in a conspiratorial tone which made me a little uneasy. Were people in Forks ridiculously forgiving? What did I have to do to make this women hate me? She placed my schedule within my reach as she began to reorganize her papers. All the while, she chattered her friendly advice. I snatched up my schedule and was out the door before she looked up from her desk. Through the door, I heard the secretary's gasp of outrage and grumbled insults. I had to fight a smile as I walked to my first class. I no longer had any doubts that I would be the frigid bitch of Forks High school before the week was out.

EPOV: The lunchroom was buzzing with gossip as I walked to the table where my siblings and their significant others were already seated.

"Edward, have you seen her?!" my sister, Alice, asked me in excitement before I had even sat down.

"I assume by _her _you mean the new girl," I replied just to tease Alice.

"Is there any other _her_ worth talking about?" Alice teased back. This annoyed Rosalie, my brother's girlfriend, who thought she was entitled as the only _her_ worth talking about in Forks.

"I haven't seen her, but I've heard she's the most beautiful girl Forks has ever seen," Jasper, Alice's boyfriend, added as he couldn't resist getting a dig at his older sister. Rosalie gasped in outrage.

"Babe, no one could possibly be more beautiful than you," my brother, Emmett, consoled Rosalie. Alice, Jasper, and I rolled our eyes.

The buzz of the lunchroom suddenly came to a halt. Emmett was proven wrong as _she_ walked through the door. I had heard that her name was Isabella Swan and that she was hot but no one had told me that she was a goddess. Everything about her demanded adoration - her full lips, her delicate face, her porcelain skin, even the way she walked. No one spoke but everyone stared as she made her way through the lunch line and to her seat at an empty table. The spell lifted slightly when she sat down. We all turned back to our lunches but the chatter was much quieter than before and everyone kept stealing glances back at the goddess.

It amazed me that ridiculously social Forks High school seemed to have decided to leave the goddess alone. Perhaps the student body was too much in awe to disturb her. I was wondering how long their admiration would keep them in their seats, when Mike Newton approached her table. I felt an odd pang of envy as Mike smiled brightly and sat down across from the goddess. She didn't look happy, actually she looked pissed. Her table was too far from my own for me to actually hear the exchanged. The entire school watched as Mike quickly got up from the table looking wounded. The goddess just looked irritated and bored.

"Yeah, I heard she was a total bitch," Rosalie commented smugly to our table. I guess that was one title Rosalie didn't mind giving up.

"Unlike the ever pleasant Rosalie?" Jasper asked. He was only voicing what everyone at the table was thinking.

"I can be pleasant" Rosalie attempted to defend herself.

"When you want something," I replied truthfully. Rosalie glared at me.

"I think having the entire school stare at me would make me pretty bitchy," Alice piped in, which brought us back to the original topic.

"Well as the new girl, she really doesn't have any room to be bitchy," Rosalie continued in her snotty tone that always reminded me of nails scratching down a chalkboard. I could tell she was about to launch into a thirty minute bitchfest.

"Rosalie, you are just jealous because you are not as beautiful as Isabella," I snapped. I just barely avoided referring to Isabella as the goddess out loud. I had successfully cut off Rosalie's tirade which was the whole reason I opened my mouth. Now, I had four pairs of disbelieving eyes staring at me. Rosalie's look immediately turned into outrage. Her eyes quickly turned to Emmett, wanting a denial. When none came, she jumped up and stormed out of the lunchroom.

"I guess I'm in trouble. Thanks a lot, Edward," Emmett grumbled but didn't make any move to follow her.

"Edward didn't stop you from jumping to Rosalie's defense," Alice replied. It was typical of her to take my side. Since we were twins, we tended to be protective of each other.

"I couldn't really argue with the truth," Emmett said with a shrug and I knew I was already forgiven. "Isabella is hot. Edward should totally tap that," He added much to my frustration. One of the joys of being the constant fifth wheel to the two most legendary couples in Forks was that everyone felt the need to set me up with someone. It was as if my singleness was a crisis that I had to be rescued from.

"The whole Mike situation gave me the impression that Isabella isn't looking for a relationship," Alice countered.

"Maybe that was Mike's problem. Maybe she's only interested in getting her toes curled," Emmett replied crudely. "Ew!" Alice exclaimed. appalled. Jasper was trying, unsuccessfully, not to laugh. Just when I thought I would have to comment, the bell rang signaling the end of lunch.

Alice walked by my side as I headed toward the door. "I guess you are about to find out if Emmett was right," She commented quietly.

"What do you mean?" I asked confused.

"I just have a feeling Isabella will be in your next class," Alice explained so low I had to strain to hear her. Occasionally, Alice would get a _feeling_ about something before it happened. Her _feelings_ tended to be vague and they weren't always accurate. For this reason, she didn't talk about them often or with many people. As many times as we had discussed her _feelings_, she still seemed uncertain of my response. Honestly, I didn't know what to make of her _feelings_ but I loved my sister so I always tried to be supportive.

"But do you have a feeling that she's going to asked me to _curl her toes_?" I asked, emphasizing the last part with my best Emmett impression. Alice immediately laughed as I hoped she would.

"I'll let you find that out for yourself," She answered. Then she turned to hurry to her next class before I could respond.

I walked into my biology class to find that Alice was right. I had spent over half the year seated at my lab table all alone and now I would being sharing it with the goddess. I wasn't completely sure how to feel about giving up my solitude for her. I was too much of a loner to be thrilled about the end of my isolation, but was it really so terrible to get to spend an hour everyday next to someone so beautiful? Then again, in my experience, the more beautiful a girl was on the outside, the uglier she was on the inside. Isabella looked like a goddess, so did that mean she had a huge character flaw? Would she be a complete moron or horribly boring? Would she be worse than Rosalie on a PMS day as her treatment of Mike seemed to prove? What if she was all of these things? Or perhaps Alice was right and the goddess was just having a harsh first day? What if she was completely different from any girl I had ever met before? What if this beautiful stranger turned out to be intelligent, deep, interesting and kind? I began to feel optimistic about the rest of my school year at Forks.

The goddess had taken the seat closest to the aisle meaning I had to squeeze between her chair and the table behind ours to get to my seat. I noticed she stiffened abruptly as I moved past her. When I took my seat, she quickly turned her face to the aisle. I was left staring at a curtain of her chestnut hair as she stared at . . . the wall? There went my optimism. I wasn't quite sure what to make of this development. Obviously, she was trying to ignore me. I just wasn't sure why she was avoiding me. Did she not want to share the table with anyone or was it just sitting next to me that was the problem? In any case, I refused to let Isabella's upset over seating arrangements bother me. I decided I would just ignore her too, maybe I wouldn't have to give up my solitude after all.

Class started and I figured it would be easy to ignore her if I paid attention to the lecture. Isabella had to turn her head toward the front of the class or risk getting called out by the teacher. Of their own volition my eyes slid to her face in profile to me. Her satin hair shielded most of her face from my view. For some unknown reason, my fingers itched to brush her hair back out of my way. Angry with myself, I forced my eyes back to the teacher.

It wasn't long before my eyes strayed back to her. Her arms were wrapped firmly around her upper body and she fisted her hands so tightly at her ribs that it had to be painful. Concerned, my gaze shot up to her face. She had turned her face more toward me and this time our eyes meet. The look she gave me was so full of hate that it chilled my bones. She quickly turned back to the teacher. I sat there stunned and wondered what the hell I had done to her. I was never one of the popular kids but I was certain I had never been hated before. I tried to focus on the teacher but I kept turning the idea around in my head getting angrier by the second. Who the hell did she think she was to automatically hate me when she knew shit about me? I wonder if she gave Mike that same look. Did she hate all of Forks? What gave her the right to assume that I was like Mike or anyone else in Forks? Stupid bitch!

After turning back to the teacher, she stayed completely rigid not moving an inch. I wanted to ignore Isabella completely. I knew she wasn't worth my time, but I was ridiculously aware of her. I hated her for hating me but I still found something captivating about her. Normally, I don't give a damn about what people think of me but I couldn't tolerate her irrational hatred. I couldn't allow things to continue like this for the rest of the year. I decided to confront her. I figured at the very least I could give her an actual reason to hate me. Plus, I worried that if I did nothing Isabella would think I was afraid of her, which was intolerable. Biology ended and I decided I couldn't keep quiet for another second but before I could utter a single word Isabella was gone.


	2. Don't Tell the Wife

Twilight and all its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. My warped view of the story belongs to my imagination.

I have to give a special thanks to my beta, best friend and greatest roommate ever: perpetualfangirl. Also, I have a big thank you to everyone who read and favorited my story. I was almost certain when I posted last week that no one would read it so every time someone favorited my story it put a big smile on my face! It would put an even bigger smile on my face if you left a review.

10 points to anyone who can name the song and artist who inspired this chapter's title. Hint: He's a member of the Britpack.

Oh one final note: There's some lemony goodness in this chapter. I hope you enjoy it because the story is going to take a while before we see anymore lemons.

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BPOV: I was running away. I had no idea where I was going. I just had to put as much space as possible between temptation and myself. I pressed my foot down harder on the gas pedal but my little Mini could only go so fast. Shit! I wished I was on the back of my Sportster, then I could truly fly away.

I had never been so tempted in my entire existence. My family's lifestyle had never been a problem for me before. From the day I learned what I was I vowed that I would never be weak like _her_. Surviving on animal blood had become so easy that I thought of it as natural to me. I thought I was immune to temptation. How could one mere teenage boy ruin all that I am? I did not even know his name. All I knew was that I wanted him. My desire for his blood was stronger than any sensation I had ever felt in all my 150 years. This was not me. This could not be me. I could not be _her_. I could not be Renee.

Thinking about Renee brought me back to my responsibilities. I glanced at the clock. I had been driving for exactly one hour, which gave me exactly one hour before Charlie would start searching for me. If I wanted to avoid troubling him, I had to turn around now. On the other hand, I could call him and explain. Charlie would understand. He would even pack everything up and follow me if I let him. Then I would never have to return to Forks and the unbearable temptation that lived there. I knew I should call him but I did not touch my phone. It felt like admitting defeat to confess to Charlie that I was every bit as weak as his wife. My pride could not countenance it.

I had to make a choice, either keep running or turn back. If I kept driving, I would have to call Charlie eventually. I could not allow him to worry over me. My relationship with Charlie was such that if I called him, I would tell him everything. If I told Charlie everything, he would tell Renee everything and she would conclude that I shared her weakness. The idea made me feel ill. If I turned back now, I could pretend everything was normal. I could avoid telling them anything . . . until I ripped the boy's throat out. I grimaced. If that came to pass, then I really would be Renee. I wanted to believe I was strong enough not to harm the boy but I was almost certain escaping from that damn biology class had taken up all my will power. I glanced at the clock again and made my decision. Cursing, I turned the car around a headed back to Forks. I just hoped my pride had not cost the boy his life.

I managed to make it home without killing anyone. This was largely due to the fact that I never saw the boy on my drive home and, since I did not know the boy's name, I certainly did not know where he lived. Then again it would not be difficult to find his home if I just followed his scent . . . which was the last thing I needed to be thinking. It truly was beneficial, especially for the boy, that I lived on the outside of Forks. I stepped through the front door to find Charlie and Renee waiting in the foyer.

"Hey, Bells!" Charlie said as he shot me a relieved look. I must have just made it home in time for him to leave for work.

"Hey, Baby! How was your day?" Renee asked excitedly. Inwardly, I cringed at the endearment. I was over a hundred years old, well beyond a baby by anyone but Renee's measure.

"Typical," I answered. Charlie frowned at my terse response. Renee seemed unruffled by my brusqueness and began drilling me with questions about my first day at Forks High. Before I could respond to any of the questions that had been fired at me, Charlie reminded us of his need to get to work. We both told Charlie good bye as he walked out the door.

"We should get going too" Renee said when she turned her attention back to me.

"Where are we going?" I asked slightly alarmed. It seemed Renee had already devised a plan and those never went well for me.

"Shopping in town. I am eager to get to know Forks," She answered. She was practically bouncing up in down in her excitement. Now I was greatly alarmed. Leave it to Renee to choose the very outing that I needed to avoid the most.

"How about we stay at home and talk? I thought you wanted to know all about my first day of school," I suggested. I knew it was a thin pretext but it was the first idea I could come up with. Renee seemed to be thrilled at my unexpected offer to open up to her. I thought I had won.

"We can talk while we shop," she replied which dashed all my hopes. "Unless . . ." Renee began. She cocked her head at me as she played with whatever thought had just entered her mind. "You are not worried that I will slip up again, are you? Bella, I promise the last time honestly was the last time. I can control myself, I know it. You and Charlie have to give me a chance," She pleaded. They were the same worn out lines she had been using since the moment I met her. Normally her empty promises pissed me off even if they still managed to work on Charlie. I only found her words mildly annoying today because I knew I was the deadlier threat to the quiet town of Forks at the moment.

"That is not the issue at all, Renee. It is just that after spending eight hours with its high school students, I have reached my limited of all things Forks related for the day," I explained in an attempt to placate her. I could tell from the way Renee looked at me that she was trying to decide if she could believe me. "We go shopping in Port Angeles" I suggested. Renee's whole face lit up and this time I knew I had succeeded.

"Great idea, baby!" She squealed while I ground my teeth at the endearment.

Hours later it was still a great idea. For once I felt grateful for Renee's desperate need to win me over. It made her more than willing to spend the entire evening in Port Angeles. Babysitting Renee proved to be a worthy distraction from the temptation calling to me from Forks. She kept my mind busy creating reasonable answers to all her questions on my first day of school during the drive. Once in Port Angeles it took all my concentration to keep Renee out of trouble.

Charlie and I had been sharing Renee-sitting duty since I proved myself able to resist feeding on humans. Charlie never made it mandatory for me to take on this responsibility for Renee but I knew he deserved a break and he only needed me to look after her during the short time he was away at work. Plus she had not slipped-up under my watch in decades, which is why I tried to continue my vigilance even when Charlie was home. He gave her entirely too much freedom but I never blamed him for the mishaps, though he blamed himself. Charlie was blinded by his love for Renee and he always acted out of this love. No, I could not blame Charlie. Instead, I held Renee responsible.

Renee had the self-control of a four year old, yet she insisted in getting involved with the human inhabitants wherever we lived. After two hundred plus years of this gypsy life, you would think she would be bored from acquainting herself with town after town. I knew I was sick of it and she a little had more than fifty years on me. Yet, Renee loved it. She seemed to thrive off of meeting new people and making friends who rarely _thrived_ for long after meeting Renee. She had this misguided notion to make our family as normal as possible. She wanted to join book clubs and have dinner parties.

She would concoct the most ridiculous plans that almost always ended in disaster. Her most horrendous plan happened when she decided what our family needed was a child. I do not know why Renee keeps trying to turn people. She has only succeeded once. The little girl bleed to death before the turning was complete. Tragic as it was things would have been worse if Renee had managed to turn her. She should have never touched the girl. She should not have even thought about it.

While thinking about all of Renee's mistakes, I realized I had to talk to Charlie about the boy. I could not let him be my mistake. I was not like Renee who never seemed to look back. If I killed the boy, it would haunt for the rest of my existence. Charlie would know what I needed to do to avoid that end. I trusted him completely.

Renee and I made it home less than half an hour before Charlie was due home. Renee decided to start a home project so she was no longer the distraction I needed. My mind kept wandering back to the boy. I found myself wondering where he was at that exact moment. I imagined how easy it would be to track him down and . . . snap out of it, Bella! I was relieved when Charlie's police cruiser pulled up to the house. I rushed to meet him in the garage.

"Did Renee get into trouble?" Charlie asked as he got out of the cruiser. I immediately felt guilty for alarming him with my sudden appearance.

"No, she had a shockingly harmless evening," I answered with a self-deprecating smile at the fact that I was the one who had been flirting with trouble all day, "Actually I needed to talk to you about my day."

"Could this have anything to do with you cutting your last two classes?" He asked, sounding full of fatherly authority.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"The people of Forks are all too eager to inform me about the mischief my teenage daughter gets into," Charlie explained as he gave me a conspiratorial wink.

I laughed and rolled my eyes. "We are really going to have to watch ourselves in this town."

"We are really going to have to watch Renee," Charlie added sobering up. He glanced askance at the door leading to the house. I knew immediately what he was wondering.

"She's decided all the rooms need to be repainted with 'cheerful' colors."

"That explains the smell," He said chuckling to himself. His adoration for Renee was written all over his face. It was difficult for me to understand how anyone could fall for Renee, let alone practical Charlie. "Well, she should be busy painting for awhile. Why don't you and I take a walk?" He suggested. Somehow he sensed my reluctance to spill my problems so close to Renee.

I flashed him an appreciative smile and we headed in to the surrounding woods. We began to walk in large circle around the house, neither of us wanting to leave Renee completely unsupervised. At first we walked silently as I tried in vain to figure out how to start this unorthodox conversation.

"You can start anytime you are ready," Charlie prompted teasingly.

"I just do not know how to begin," I explained sheepishly.

"What about telling me why you left school early?" He suggested. Leave it to Charlie to hit right in the center of the problem.

"Well, there was this boy in my biology class . . ."

"A boy?" Charlie asked intrigued.

"Not like that at all," I said rolling my eyes, "I was not interested in him as a mate. All I was interested in was his smell . . . his blood. Charlie, I have never NEVER wanted a human's blood like I wanted his. It took everything I had in me to leave the classroom without hurting him. The worst thing is I am still craving his blood. I have no clue what to do, how to handle this. I just feel so weak."

"You are not weak, Bella. Hell, sometimes I think you are stronger than Renee and I put together. What you are going through now is just your instincts finally catching up with you. Honestly, I expected this to happen a long time ago," Charlie replied and he put his arm around me in a comforting gesture. Relief flooded over me. Charlie's opinion was the only one that matter in my life. I do not think I could cope if I disappointed him. "As far as solving this problem goes, all you have to do is say the word and we are out of this town," he offered just as I knew he would.

I thought about us leaving for a moment but it did not sit well with me. It felt way too much like running away which was not me at all. Plus, I could not make myself a burden to Renee and Charlie. This was my problem and I did not want anyone else to have to pay for it.

"But we just moved here and Renee is obviously getting settled. I can not ask you to pack everything up and leave again," I tried to explain.

"Of course you can," Charlie said as he shrugged off my insecurities. "How often have you done just that for Renee? We owe you. Renee will understand. In fact, I think she will be pleased that for once we are not leaving because of something she did." He smiled at me but I could not find it in me to smile back. The thing I dreaded the most was for Renee to think this somehow made her and me the same.

I stopped walking and shrugged out of Charlie's embrace. I knew he would not be pleased with what I was about to say. "Charlie, I do not want Renee to know about any of this," I declared. I steeled myself and stared him straight in the eye.

"Bella . . ." he began with a sigh.

"Please," I cut in. I rarely asked him for anything. I hoped that fact made him realize how important this was to me.

"She will want to know why we have to move and I will not lie to her," he said, standing his ground but I expected this argument.

"Then we will not move. I think you are right. My history proves the strength of my self-control. Surely, it is strong enough to avoid the temptation of a teenage boy," I replied. I was hoping my voice gave away more confidence than I actually felt.

"You can not know that for sure and I will not have you put an innocent at risk just because you do not want Renee to know you are not impervious to temptation," Charlie countered. He had successfully cut through all my crap and gone straight to the heart of the matter.

"That is not what I am doing," I continued stubbornly. He did not seem to believe so I added, "Look, when I was out with Renee today I almost completely forgot about the boy. Obviously, he has not destroyed all of my self-control. I just have to become distracted enough that his scent loses its power over me."

"Perhaps . . . but I do not think you should be throwing yourself in the way of this temptation. You would just be gambling with this boy's life," Charlie said still unconvinced.

"Then I will stay away from the school, from the whole town of Forks until I am sure of my self-control again," I resolved. I could not give up on this issue.

"I think Renee will notice you are not going to school. She will want to know why." Charlie could be just as stubborn as me.

"I will keep up the appearance of going to school everyday and find somewhere else to be. I will drive to Port Angeles everyday if I have to. Please, just give me until the end of the week. If I am not strong enough to return to school by the end of the week, then I will tell Renee everything and we will leave. Please, Charlie have faith in me," I begged. This was my trump card. After his continued faith in Renee, regardless how many times she let him down, Charlie really could not deny me this when I had never let him down before.

"One week," He relented. "Please do not make me regret this."

"I promise I will not disappoint you. You promise you will not say anything to Renee," It was more of a question than a statement.

"I promise," Charlie gave in reluctantly.

EPOV: We were back in biology class. I couldn't concentrate on anything the teacher was saying because of my mingled fascination and rage toward Isabella. She was dressed like a slut with the top buttons of her blouse undone allowing for a teasing glimpse of the black bra she had on under it. Her skirt was practically nonexistent and showed off her perfect legs. It amazed me how someone so little could have legs that went on forever. Her fuck me heels drove me crazy with desire. When her eyes met mine, her hatred for me was a palpable thing and it made me despise her.

The bell rang which brought an end to my daily dose of torture. I leaned down for my bag and when I stood up the entire class seemed to have vanished. Only Isabella and I were left in the classroom. She stood blocking my way as she took her own sweet time packing up her things and completely ignored me. At that moment, all the rage I felt toward her crashed over me and I snapped.

"Why are you such a bitch?!" I demanded.

Isabella stared up at me looking shocked and disgusted by my audacity in speaking to her, which only fueled my anger. "I don't know maybe it is because I am forced to spend my day with revolting assholes like you," she answered snidely as she turned to leave. I grabbed her upper arm and wheeled back around to face me. She stumbled but caught herself right before she crashed into me. We stood less than an inch apart and glared at each other.

"You know nothing about me. You have no right to judge me. Anyway, who said you weren't revolting? Who would want a shallow slut like you anyway?" I snapped. As I spoke, Isabella kept trying to shrug out of my grasp but I just tightened my hold unwilling to release her. She went still when my words registered in her head.

"You don't want me?" She challenged practically purring. Isabella parted her full lips and struck a seductive pose which caused her breast to lightly press against my chest.

"No more than you want me," I growled. Then I kissed her hard and crushed her to me. I poured all the desire and anger that raged inside me into our kiss.

Isabella clung to my chest and kissed me back just as roughly. She nipped first at my lips and then my tongue as I thrust it between her lips to claim her mouth. Her hands slid into my hair so she could grasp fistfuls and pull slightly. My hands slid down her form, when they reached her hips I lifted her up. Her long legs immediately wrapped around my hips as I settled her on the edge of our lab table.

I broke the kiss then so I could search her face. I found exactly what I hoped for in her passion clouded eyes. Isabella could hate me forever as long as she burned for me the way I did for her. In frustration, she pulled my face back down to hers in a silent demand for my kiss. I let her have her way for a moment but then I broke the kiss to trail my lips down her neck. She let her head fall back to offer more which I took greedily.

Isabella's hands moved from my hair to run down chest and abdomen. They finally stopped at my waistband and began undoing my pants. At the same time, I shoved her skirt up to her waist. My hands ripped off her panties just as she freed my dick from my jeans. I grasped Isabella's hips and plunged my swollen dick into her hard. She cried out in pleasure or pain or some mixture of both. I wasn't sure which and I really didn't give a fuck either way.

At that crucial moment, my alarm clock sounded. I woke up from another erotic dream with a stream of expletives pouring from my mouth. After turning off my clock, I rolled over on my back to glare up at the ceiling as sexual frustration and self-disgust welled up inside me. I had been fucking Isabella stupid in my dreams every night after the first day I met her. I never knew it was possibly to viciously hate and desperately want the same person. Isabella represented everything I loathed. I should be disgusted by her. On some level she did disgust me but not enough to stop me from wanting to do unspeakable things to her body. I hated the power she held over me. No one had seen Isabella for the past three days, yet she still managed to torture me.

Emmett interrupted my brooding by pounding on my door and yelling "You have to stop jacking off, now! Mom said it's time to get up!" I could hear his booming laugh through the door. I rolled my eyes at his crude humor and began getting dressed.

I decided to choosing the lesser of two evils and caught a ride to school with Jasper and Alice instead of Emmett and Rosalie. Emmett and Jasper had been giving me hell since Monday. The entire school knew Isabella abandoned the rest of her classes right after spending an hour next to me. My brother and Jasper had decided I must be responsible for her continued absence and they thought it was hilarious to speculate on what I did to scare her away. Normally, I could laugh off their teasing but currently I had an extremely short fuse thanks to my already agitated state. Fortunately, Alice tempered Jasper's humor at my expense while Rosalie just seemed to make Emmett worse.

"I think we will see Isabella today," Alice said without preamble. At least I thought it was without preamble, I had been distracted before and couldn't be certain. Now she had my full attention.

"You think or you know?" Jasper asked.

"I just have a feeling . . ." She replied blushing.

"So you know," He stated with confidence. Their exchanged surprised me a little. I hadn't been completely certain Jasper knew about Alice's feelings. The fact that he took Alice seriously raised my respect for him, which he immediately destroyed by adding, "Looks like I won the bet! Emmett didn't think Isabella would get over whatever Edward did to her until next week." He started to laugh but Alice's glare shut him up. I desperately needed my own car.

I didn't know how to take Alice's news. I couldn't decide if seeing Isabella would make things better or worse. I wondered if I would have a opportunity to confront her about that first day. It seemed a little childish to bring up something that happened days ago but obviously I wasn't over it so maybe getting my chance to tell her off would help. I wondered if our second meeting would end like one of my dreams. I started to get a little too excited at that idea so I quickly moved on to another thought. Maybe Alice was wrong and I wouldn't see Isabella at all today. Maybe I would just catch a glimpse of her as she headed to the office to drop out of school. I didn't know which scenario I preferred the most. Well, I knew which one my dick preferred but it wasn't so obvious for the rest of me.

As I thought about this Jasper turned into the school parking lot. The students already at school seemed to have their attention fixated on one particular spot in the parking lot. Glancing at that spot, it became obvious what fascinated them so. Alice had been correct. Isabella was back.


	3. You Owe Me an Apology

Twilight and all its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. My warped view of the story belongs to my imagination.

I have to give a special thanks to my beta, perpetualfangirl. Check out her blog. The link's on my profile.

Also, I have a big thank you to everyone who read and favorited my story. Every time someone favorited my story it put a big smile on my face! It would put an even bigger smile on my face if you left a review.

Another 10 points to anyone who can name the song and artist who inspired this chapter's title. Hint: He's a member of the Britpack.

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EPOV: I made it to biology class before Isabella. I wondered if she would show up. Maybe she really did change her schedule. This thought filled me with an odd mixture of hope and disappointment. If I went by her behavior at lunch, today was going be exactly like Monday. Again, she chose to sit at a table all to herself while looking disdainfully bored and glaring at anyone who came too close. The only difference from Monday was that today when our eyes met instead of finding hate I found a strange sense of determination. I was still trying to figure what the hell that was about as I sat at my lab table.

Isabella walked into to class at that moment, which immediately interrupted my thoughts. It sickened me how ridiculously aware I was of her. I was shocked that she was impossibly more beautiful than I remembered. She moved with an unearthly grace as she took her seat next to me. Even in a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers she looked sexy as hell. Her figure was petite and perfectly curved with her perky breast and tight ass. Her entire body seemed to demand to be touched. She let her dark hair flow freely down her back.

Suddenly, she turned her heart-shaped face toward me. My mind scrambled in shock and suspicion at her unexpected confrontation while my eyes soaked in the features of her face from her delicate nose to her perfectly arched eyebrows to her big topaz eyes framed with thick, long lashes to her deliciously full lips. Those lips stretched into a friendly smile as she said, "Hi, my name is Bella. You're Edward, right?"

My eyes snapped up to hers in surprise. I wasn't surprised that she knew my name. In a town as small as Forks someone had to mention it to her by now. Instead, I was suspicious of her pleasantness. She looked curious and friendly. Still, her hatred from Monday burned too vividly in my memory which made me wary of her motives.

"So you can speak to me today?" I asked with sarcasm heavy in my tone. If she thought I would just forgive and forget her actions from Monday because she was playing nice today, then she was sadly mistaken.

"I suppose I can," Isabella replied with a smirk as if she found my words amusing. I ground my teeth together angrily.

The teacher distracted me as he explained today's lab to the class. Isabella took up so much of my attention that I hadn't even noticed the microscope and slides sitting on our table until that moment. Suddenly everything clicked in my head. Isabella must have heard that we had a lab today and now she was trying to butter me up so I would do all the work. I rolled my eyes. This was nothing new to me. I had a reputation in Forks of being a good student and typically got stuck with all the work in any "group" assignment. I briefly considered letting Isabella struggle through the lab on her own. She deserved worse but I couldn't do it. I wasn't about to allow my grade to suffer because of her.

Sighing, I put the first slide on the microscope and studied it. I knew almost immediately that it was anaphase and I reached for the lab worksheet to fill-in the answer. I didn't bother speaking to Isabella. I refused to pretend to be part of a team if I was doing everything solo. Apparently Isabella had other ideas because, just as I began to write, she asked, "May I check?"

Her request made me pause in my writing. All I could do was stare at her in confusion as I tried to figure out what she was up to now. When I didn't move, Isabella let out an impatient noise and pulled the microscope closer to herself. In a blink, she glanced at the slide and then back at me. "Anaphase," she said matter-of-factly.

I racked my brain as I puzzled over how she knew the answer so quickly. Still distracted, I glanced back down at the worksheet to see that I had already written "ana." My second light bulb moment of the day. I couldn't resist calling Isabella out on it this time.

"Do you think you are clever?" I asked condescendingly.

"Excuse me?" She was obviously playing innocent.

"You only knew the answer because I had already begun to write it. You aren't going to fool me into believing you have a brain so you should give up now. Though, I suppose I should be impressed that you actually know the word 'anaphase,'" I explained. I was a little smug as I waited for her response.

Isabella didn't say a word. She just glared at me and then reached for the next slide. I watched as she changed out the slides. Then she glanced through the lens for all of a heartbeat.

"Prophase," she said. Her unwavering stare challenged me to prove her wrong. For the millionth time today, she caught me off guard. There was no way she could be correct when she barely looked at the slide. I reached for the microscope. I wondered what was the point to her bluff when I could so easily uncover her deceit. I looked through the lens ready to call her out on her lie only to find that she was right. I glanced back at Isabella in shock and she smirked at me again.

The smirk annoyed the hell out of me. I simply couldn't let her win. "Lucky guess," I replied which was the only logical explanation.

Isabella's smirk immediately vanished at my words as she narrowed her eyes at me. She snatched the microscope back and grabbed up the next slide. We went through the rest of the lab this way. She studied each slide and named the phase with impossible speed. I would then check but she got every one correct. By the time we were finished, I was feeling a little dizzy.

Due to our little competition, we had finished the lab before the rest of the class. Now Isabella stared at me expectantly. I had no idea what she wanted from me but I wasn't about to try and figure it out. Bella kept proving every assumption I made about her wrong. I wasn't used to being so completely off the mark about someone. I typically had a talent for reading people. It was my eerie ability to match Alice's _feelings. _I figured it was part of the whole twin thing for us both to be freaks. I could usually tell what a person was thinking. I wasn't always accurate but I guessed correctly more often than not. I assumed the ability had to do with me being more aware of human behavior than most people. Apparently, I had become over-confident in my ability because I didn't have a clue what Isabella was thinking. I resolved to give up trying to read her. I would simply have to act like a normal person and ask Bella what she was thinking.

BPOV "What?" Edward asked me. He seemed unsure of himself. I could not believe that he had nothing to say to me after I had just proved all his accusations wrong. He had to know what I was expecting. It bugged me that he was going to play stupid now.

"You owe me an apology," I demanded. When he stared at me dumbfounded, I just got more annoyed. "You really should not make thoughtless judgments about people."

"_I_ owe _you _an apology?! _I _make thoughtless judgments!" Edward exploded. He was angry at me again. Instead of aggravating me, his anger entertained me, though I knew better than to let him see my amusement. There was something adorable about this weak mortal's fury directed at me. He reminded me of a teacup poodle growling at a rottweiler.

Then Edward started ranting about my behavior on Monday and how I should be the one apologizing. As I waited patiently for him to wind down, I could not help noticing that Edward epitomized the word delicious. His passionate anger set a fire burning in his emerald green eyes. Frustrated, he roughly ran a hand through his thick bronze colored hair which caused it to stick up at odd angles. His messy hair gave me visions of the morning after a long night of passionate screwing. The lust welling up inside me took me by surprise. I had never been interested in having sex with a mortal for good reason. Getting that close to one could only have disastrous consequences. So why was I suddenly wondering how Edward's full lips would feel on mine? Why did my fingers itch to trace the perfect planes of his face? Why was I imagining how the scruff covering his jaw would feel against my skin? A new hunger was building inside of me that had nothing to do with blood and Edward could not afford for me to find him appetizing in any form of the word.

In an attempt to control the desire twisting inside me, I bowed my head and close my eyes. I thought I had adequately prepared myself to resist Edward in the three days I was away from him. I was prepared to fight the overwhelming temptation of his scent. It still pulled against my willpower but it was easier to remember all the reasons why I should not give in. What I had not prepared for was a battle with the irresistible sexual temptation that Edward presented. Charlie suggested that I get to know Edward in an effort to make him more human to me and less like a meal. This is why Charlie came home every night full of information about Edward. In a town this small, it was not difficult for the chief of police to find out the name of the boy his daughter sat next to in science class and then learn more information about him than anyone could want to know. Still, I did not think jumping Edward's bones was what Charlie intended by my getting to know him.

I realized Edward had finished his rant. Warily, I glanced up to see him looking smug. His smugness confused me at first so I tried to remember the last thing he said. Then I grasped what conclusion he had made from my bowed head. Edward thought I was ashamed! I was outraged. Even while most of my thoughts were focus on other things, I had heard every word Edward had said so I knew the best way to counter his argument.

"Did you ever think that perhaps I was having a really bad day? Perhaps my behavior had nothing to do with you? Perhaps my world does not revolve around you?" My main goal was to shame Edward as he thought he shamed me. I thought I had succeeded because he looked chagrined for second but immediately became angry again.

"Just because you have a bad day, you don't have the right to take it out on the entire school. And are you trying to tell me that you skipping the rest of the day after spending one hour next to me and then going missing for three days had nothing to do with me?" Edward asked in disbelief.

"You thought that was about you?!" I snickered at him. I felt an inexplicable pang guilt about lying to Edward, which I ignored. I knew why I had to lie to him. I had left him with unanswered questions and I certainly could not tell him the truth.

"Then why were you gone?" He challenge. Edward was not easily deterred, which I enjoyed more than I should. He made an stimulating opponent.

"Family emergency," I lied easily.

"Which you were alerted of right after biology class ended?" He asked doubtfully.

"Charlie, my father, is the new chief of police. It's not difficult for him to alert me quickly in an emergency situation. Renee, my mother, was having a bad morning Monday. I knew to be expecting news." Staying as vague as possible was always a good strategy. I knew Edward had to be wondering about Renee and her emergency but I was depending on him to be too polite to pry.

"The new chief of police is your father? Isn't he a bit young?" Edward asked obviously confused. I did not mind him asking this question. It was one I had been asked countless times before.

"Charlie and Renee adopted me after I lost my parents in a car accident," I explained by rote as I tried to ignore the familiar bitterness that welled up inside me whenever I thought of my parents "accident."

I watched that emotions playing across Edward's face. I could tell he was intrigued by my revelations but was too polite to press for more information, exactly as I had hoped. It was the normal reaction people had to my family history, which was why it made a good alibi. It provided a logical answer without leaving room for any more questions.

"So is everything okay now with Renee? With you?" Edward asked in a gentle voice. I had a brief moment of panic as I worried I had some how revealed that I blamed Renee for my parents' deaths until my thoughts caught up with the present and I realize Edward was referring to the family emergency. I meet his eyes, which were so full of concern I had to immediately look away. His compassion left me speechless. I had spent so long worrying over Renee and Charlie that I had forgotten what it was like to have someone show concern for me. For a second, I imagined telling him everything. It would be wonderful to share my burdens with someone. Then I came crashing back to reality as I realized Edward would run in terror if he knew what I faced on a daily basis.

Still I could not resist opening up just a little. "As okay as life with Renee can ever be." I edited as I continued with my explanation, "She has these . . . episodes. They can get very . . . problematic. The episodes have been happening for as long as I have known Renee, so I am beyond qualified to clean up after her."

Edward looked thoroughly confused. I immediately regretted saying anything. Obviously, he would want to know more. Obviously, I could not tell him the truth. My only options were to lie or avoid. He started to ask a question about Renee's episodes but I cut him off. "It is a mortifying situation. I do not feel comfortable discussing it," I said quickly.

I realized then that somehow I had gotten completely off course. Charlie's advice was for me to get to know Edward better, not the other way around. I started to ask him about his family but the bell rang. Edward sent me one last sympathetic smile as he gathered his things. I stared far too intently at his delicious (of course) butt as he walk out the door while I wondered what the hell just happened.


	4. She Was the Woman I Wanted the Most

Twilight and all its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. My warped view of the story belongs to my imagination.

I know I am late posting this chapter. I am truly sorry but I have a good excuse. I spent the weekend at twicon in Atlanta, which took up all my time and energy. It was totally worth it, though! I got to meet Peter Facinelli, Daniel Cudmore, Gil Birmingham, Christopher Heyerdahl, Michael Welch, Kiowa Gordon and Tinsel Korey. The highlight of my weekend was when Pfach sat down in the chair next to mine and leaned against me! My roommate/beta and I will be posting pictures and details about the whole weekend on her blog. I will alert you when it's up. The link's on my profile.

As always, I have to give a special thanks to my beta, perpetualfangirl. She's my rock star!

Special thinks to my reviewers! You are rock stars, too! Also, I have a big thank you to everyone who read and favorited my story. Every time someone favorited my story it put a big smile on my face!

Another 10 points to anyone who can name the song and artist who inspired this chapter's title. Hint: He's a member of the Britpack.

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BPOV: There was no way in hell that tonight was going to end well. Renee had been anxious to explore Forks before we were even settled into our house. Charlie and I had managed to evade Renee's requests to go into town until tonight. Of course, she would wait until after Charlie left for work to demand we going out. Now I must spend my Saturday evening escorting Renee about town. I knew it was probably better for her first venture into Forks to be on my watch, but that did not mean I was happy about the trip.

Even with vampire speed on her side, it took Renee hours to get ready to go out anywhere, which was largely the result of her indecisiveness. When Renee finally announced that she was ready, it was relatively late for a town as small as Forks. I was hoping everything would have already closed for the evening. Renee was dressed to impress in her flirty red skirt, matching sweater and black heels. She frowned at my ensemble of t-shirt, jeans, and chucks which I had worn all day but she did not say anything. She knew complaining about my outfit would not change anything. She was not the only one who could be stubborn.

We rode into Forks only to discover that I had been right. As I drove my Mini around town, all we passed was one blacked out building after another. Renee was getting discouraged and I was about to suggest giving up, when she spotted what had to be the only business still open. I rolled my eyes as Renee squealed and I turned the Mini into the parking lot of the tiny bar. Only about a dozen parking spaces were taken, which slightly eased my mood. The fewer people here tonight, the less of a chance that Renee would get into trouble.

There was a small problem when we tried to enter the bar. Of course the man at the door asked to see my I.D which in and of itself was not a problem. I had several I.D.s. Each one putting me at a different age, including one that showed I was old enough to get in the bar. The problem was whether or not to use that I.D. in a town where I was supposed to be 17. Another dilemma was whether or not I should even be trying to get into a bar in a small town that thought I was the daughter of the chief of police. Before I could decide what to do, Renee flashed the man a smile and said "She's with me" as she handed over her I.D. The man was so charmed that he did not even bother to check Renee's I.D. Instead, he handed it back to Renee and waved us both in. I knew it was still likely that someone would recognize me as Chief Swan's daughter but I figured it was Charlie's problem not mine.

Once inside, I did a quick scan of the place to try to judge the level of devastation Renee could cause tonight. I was not pleased with my findings. The place was one long narrow room. The bar ran along the left side of the room and almost took up half the space in the building. There were bulky booths attached to the right wall and circular tables took up what space remained between the bar and the booths. There was a small makeshift stage pressed up against the back wall of the bar. I suppose the number of patrons would seem sparse anywhere else but the tiny room could only be described as crowded. Worse yet, most of the crowd seemed to be slightly intoxicated and extremely friendly. I did not know how I was going to kept them a safe distance away from Renee.

I wanted to turn around and leave. I wanted to drag Renee back home. I wanted to yell for the crowd to run, run far away. At the very least, I wanted to find an empty table in a secluded - yeah right - corner and scare everyone away until Renee was ready to leave. Unfortunately, Renee did not want to do any of those things so I dutifully followed her over to the bar. Of course the bartender immediately noticed her. Renee ordered a cosmopolitan and turned expectantly to me.

"We do not drink," I reminded Renee so low only her vampire ears could hear me.

"Baby, we are in a bar. You have at least order a drink," She replied in the tone one uses with a particularly stubborn five year old. The "baby" mixed with her tone was more than I could tolerate.

"Whiskey straight," I said to the bartender in an attempt to piss off Renee.

"She is only joking," Renee explained quickly to the bartender when he just stared at me in shock. Renee threw me a disapproving frown. Then she turned back to the bartender with a smile and told him I would have a cosmopolitan too.

"Absolutely not," I exclaimed. The bartender was beginning to look frustrated. Renee opened her mouth to protest my protest but she closed it when I ordered a Heineken.

After we received our drinks Renee wanted to linger at the bar but I refused. I figured the bar was going to see the most traffic, which we needed to avoid. Renee must have sensed how tense I was because she did not put up a fight. She simply followed behind me as I searched for a table that was unoccupied. I would have much preferred a booth but all of those were taken. Most of the tables were taken as well.

Finally, I found an empty table in an almost secluded spot. It was located in a corner created by the right wall and the back of the bench seat of the last booth. Still, it was only a few table from the stage, which was getting a lot of attention. Hopefully, whoever was performing would be good enough to distract the crowd from approaching Renee and me.

In all my tension over Renee, I had not looked at the stage once but, as I caught the first few chords of an acoustic guitar, I glanced up and was immediately captivated. I was shocked to find that I recognized those long, perfect fingers strumming the guitar. In fact, I had spent much of the day fantasizing about those fingers on my body. Those were Edward Cullen's fingers. My eyes flew to his face right before he open his mouth and began to fill the room with the most moving, soulful music I had ever heard. When I became a vampire, I suspected that I had forfeited my soul but I had never been completely sure. As soon as Edward began to sing, I knew without a doubt that I had a soul and I knew my soul would always belong to Edward. As I listened to him sing, my world melted away. There was no crowded bar room. There was no Charlie or Renee. There was no me. Only Edward and his guitar.

As I watched him, Edward kept his eyes closed in a manner that exhibited his passion for the music. Suddenly, he open his eyes which immediately locked on mine as if he knew all along that I was watching him from my corner. Edward gave me a quick smirk and I could not resist smiling shyly back at him. I was certain that I had never quite felt so seventeen even when I was seventeen. As these alien emotions overwhelmed me, I could only make sense of one truth. It would be ridiculously easy to fall in love with Edward Cullen. I knew that truth should terrify me but all I felt was excited joy.

Then Renee opened her mouth and that was all it took to send me crashing back to reality. "Isn't he handsome? I think he likes you. We should go up and talk to him when he is finished," she babbled on excitedly. Every word out of Renee's mouth sent a new wave of dread over me as she dreamed up an introduction between us and Edward. _No! No! No! No! No! _Absolutely-no-self-control-Renee could not be allowed anywhere near my irresistibly scented Edward. Such an encounter could only end tragically. Imagining it made me begin to panic. There was nothing I would not do to keep Renee away from Edward.

EPOV: I always had to close my eyes whenever I began a performance. I was terrified that I would read rejection in the thoughts of my audience so every time I was on stage I tried to avoid all of their thoughts. To do this I had to close my eyes and focus only on the music. I wouldn't open my eyes until the music filled me so completely that I was sure nothing else could intrude.

This night began just like all the others. As I closed my eyes and started to play, my mind stumbled upon an oddly peaceful space in the bar. Almost intuitively, I inclined my head toward the peaceful place. While facing that peace, I found it was much easier for the music to fill me. Curious about its source, I opened my eyes to find to find a familiar pair of butterscotch eyes staring back at me. I couldn't stop the smirk from forming as I realized the goddess was my peace. Bella returned my smirk with a smile that made my heart ache. Then her companion caught her attention and Bella broke our stare to focus on her.

The entire time I was on stage Bella's eyes never met mine again even though I watched her closely. She just kept staring down at her table with an occasional glance at her companion. Still, somehow, I knew she was acutely aware of my music and her awareness made all the difference. I had always been passionate about music. It was my life. And yet, the music had never touched me so profoundly as it did now when I knew Bella was listening.

Perhaps, it was simply that I couldn't shake the depth of emotion I found in Bella's eyes when our gazes had connected at the beginning of my performance. I recognized some of those emotions because I felt them too. I could see that she got it. She got the music. She got me. I had never felt so understood and accepted as I did in the moment I spent in Bella's eyes. It had been as if I caught a glimpse of her soul as it reached for me with outstretched arms. Still there was so much more in Bella's eyes that I didn't understand. I could have gotten lost in those eyes. I suspected I did lose part of myself in her eyes. For when she broke our gaze, I no longer felt whole. Those few seconds in Bella's eyes had changed me irrevocably.

I finished performing and I packed up my gear as quickly as possible. I had to speak to Bella even though I had no idea what to say to her. I just had to be near her. I wanted another chance to stare in to her eyes. I needed to feel whole again and suspected I would only feel that way with Bella.

I gathered my things and headed in the direction of Bella's table only to find she was no longer there. Slightly panicked, I searched the crowd for her. Relief washed over me when I spotted Bella and her companion standing near an empty booth halfway between the stage and the door. They were both so caught up in there conversation that neither of them noticed me as I made I way towards them. I wasn't yet close enough to hear what was being said but I could that Bella looked anxious. I glanced at her companion to see her looking frustrated. I surmised they were having some kind of argument.

I had never seen Bella's companion before. She didn't look much older than Bella. I remembered what she said about being adopted. I guessed this woman could be Renee which would explain Bella's anxiety. Still, I had a hard time imagining a mother and the wife of a cop taking her underage daughter to a bar and buying her a beer. Perhaps, the woman was an old friend and Bella was just worried she would get caught sneaking into a bar.

When I finally made it within hearing range I stopped as I tried to decide whether I should break up the argument or not. As I listened to their words, it found that I didn't have to make a choice.

"You seriously do not want to speak to him?," the companion asked skeptically.

"No! I want to go home," Bella practically shouted. Somehow she looked even more anxious, almost panicked. I wasn't sure what to make of her words and behavior.

"But you were flirting with him at the beginning of the show."

"Me? Flirt with Edward Cullen?," Bella scoffed and I stiffened.

"Oh, you know him?"

"He goes to my school. If I needed to talk to him, I would talk to him there. The last thing I want to do is waste the rest of my evening with some stupid teenage boy." The companion frowned and began to speak but Bella cut her off. "Look you got what you wanted. We came to this shitty bar. We listened to the shitty music. Now we are going home." With her last sentence, Bella grabbed her companion by the arm and all but dragged her to the door.

Bella's final words left me paralyzed as anger, confusion, and hurt battled inside me. The anger won because it was the only emotion my pride could deal with. As I watched Bella's retreating form, I considered going after her just so I could scream at her. To do that, I would have to admit to overhearing her words which would most likely cause the companion to pity me. My pride couldn't deal with being pitied on top of everything else. Instead I stood in my spot, glaring at Bella.

Right before she walked out the door, she looked over her shoulder straight at me. For a second, the eyes that held mine were full of regret. Then she swiftly turned back and was out the door. Regret? What the fuck was I suppose to make of with that? Then I realized, for to find me so quickly, she must have known I was standing here all along. Is that she regretted? Saying those things in front of me? Fuck it! I didn't care anymore. I tired of trying to figure Bella out. I was done.

I had been wrong. Looking in her eyes didn't make me feel whole. Looking into Isabella Swan's eyes just left me feeling hollow. So I was done with her and all her shit.

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A/N Even I'm angry at Bella for calling Edward's music shitty. It was the blackest form of blasphemy. I promise she only said it out of extreme duress.


	5. White Flag

Hello, my readers! Do you still remember me? I promise I remember you and think of you often. This is my silly (yet still sincere) way of saying I'm sorry for taking so long to update. Life seems to find away to get in the way of my favorite things and writing this fanfic is definitely one of my favorite things.

Perpetualfangirl and I have finally completed our twicon recap. Another thing that took entirely too long to accomplish. Sorry guys. Anyway please check it out at perpetualfangirl(dot)blogspot(dot)com and leave her a comment. As always I have to thank Perpetualfangirl for beta-ing me and her continue support. I couldn't do without you, babe!

Also, I created a trailer for the Looking Glass. It's the first video I've ever put together. I have definitely seen far better fanfic trailers but I'm still pretty proud of it. Check it out www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=Jl31ZCVvfo8 and please please please pass it on to other fanfic readers. A link to the trailer is also posted on my profile.

Twilight and all its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. My warped view of the story belongs to my imagination.

Final comment on this chapter, it's definitely angsty but it ends on a light note. Enjoy!

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BPOV: I lingered in my car as I did every morning before school started for the day. The last thing I wanted was to wander among the mass of students socializing in the parking lot. Someone would try to approach me and I just could not deal with over eager mortals after my hellish weekend.

Renee was still upset with me for Saturday. She had spent the remainder of the weekend sulking about it. I had explained the situation to Charlie and he had agree that leaving the bar was the best possible solution. Yet, he simply could not be pleased with me when I was the source of Renee's upset. The entire time Renee sulked, Charlie had given me disapproving looks. Still, Renee and Charlie were mild nuisances. I had dealt with that type of behavior from them many times before.

No, my weekend was hellish because of the overwhelming guilt and uncertainty that had plagued me all weekend. Guilt and uncertainty that revolve around the boy who was now walking across the parking lot with his siblings and their significant others. Every time I saw him with his family it seemed to me that Edward always situated himself slightly outside the couples' circle as if he did not quite fit with them. Like now, he was trailing behind the two laughing couples. It was obvious from the way Edward's black hoodie hid most of his face that he wanted to be invisible. It amazed me that Edward succeeded. While his laughing comrades drew the eyes of the students they passed, no one so much as glanced at the gorgeous boy shadowing them. I noticed him. Every fiber of my being stood alert at Edward's presence. How was it possible that in the eyes of Forks he faded into the background? They did not deserve him.

I found it both frustrating and relieving that Edward's face was hidden. I knew the words I spoke last Saturday night were unforgivable. Even if they were lies born out of desperation, I had injured Edward deeply. I had witnessed the pain beneath the anger in his eyes before I walked out the bar that night. It would torture me to see that the pain was still in his eyes today. Yet, I needed to know if the damage done was reparable. I would only discovered that if he looked at me.

Edward's sister chose that moment to meet my gaze. Her glowing face had been full of laughter only a second before but she sobered up when her eyes found mine. I watched as so many inexplicable emotions crossed her face that all I could sense was the urgency beneath them. I knew she was asking me for something with her intense stare but I could not decide whether she wanted me to stay away from her brother or keep trying. Before I could understand any of this, Edward growled her name and she turned her gaze to him. She only responded with a sheepish shrug as he scowled at her. Then she reached for her beau's hand and followed him into the school, leaving Edward standing alone. He finally looked my way right before he entered the building. If the poison had not stopped my heart years ago, the fury in his eyes would have accomplished the task. It looked like the damage was irreparable.

I spent the time before lunch debating whether I should even attempt to heal my relationship with Edward or leave it be. I knew the closer he and I became, the more I exposed him to danger. Some how, some way Renee would become involved. It was not her lack of self-control alone that threatened Edward. I had foolishly allowed Renee to witness my emotions towards Edward at the bar. Even after I locked them away, I found it difficult to deter Renee from considering him as a potential match for me. If she decided Edward was the key to my happiness, nothing would stop her from attempting to turn him.

With the threat of Renee weighing heavy in my thoughts, I had almost completely resigned myself to distancing myself from Edward. As much as it would pain me to lose him this way, it was more preferable than exposing him to Renee's depravity. I was all but set on my decision as I settled myself at my lone lunch table, but then Edward walked in the room and everything changed. I watched him as he stood in line to get his food. While he was the center of my attention, the students near him barely acknowledged his presence. Something in Edward called to me. Something deeper and sweeter than his blood. Whatever it was, I was powerless against it.

As Edward neared the end of the line, I left my table to approach him. I knew I did not deserve forgiveness. I knew there was a good chance that he would reject me but I had to try. I simply did not have the ability to not try.

I waited until he turned away from the line and started toward his family to get his attention. For one horrible second I thought he was going to ignore me completely but then he stopped in front of me. He stood with only his right side facing me and kept his eyes fixed on the far wall. He looked ready to continue his path to his lunch table at any moment. I noticed that the crowded cafeteria had grown quiet and immediate chastised myself for approaching Edward here in the middle of the room. I could feel everyone's curious eyes on us and I could see the tension growing in Edward as he realized that he was no longer invisible. I did not know if the audience would make him to stay or cause him to bolt.

Fear of him leaving moved me into action. I closed the distance between us. I had to position myself in front of him since Edward still would not turn his head in my direction. Even though I stood close enough for him to hear my whispered words, he refused to end his staring contest with the wall.

"I am sorry." Silence stretched between us as I waited for him to react. The only proof I could find that he had even heard my words was his grip tightening on his tray of food. "What I said Saturday night were vile, repulsive lies. I did not mean a single word and regret them more than you could possibly imagine because, Edward, your music-." My words broke off as Edward closed his eyes, breathed deeply, and then exhaled, which caused his scent to slam into me as his breath blew across my face. "Your music is . . . great," I finished lamely as I reigned in my thirst.

Edward's eyes snapped back open and he began to step around me. Obviously, I had pushed his patience to the limit. Perhaps this was the intelligent time to surrender but I was not capable of allowing Edward to walk away. Instead, I maneuvered myself so that I blocked his path. "That is not what I intended to say. Your music-"

"Why, Bella? I don't care if you were lying. I don't care if you meant what you said. I don't care what you think of my music. I just want to know why you said it." As he spoke, he finally met my gaze. His eyes scalded me with their ferocity.

"Renee was with me. You kept moving closer. I panicked."

"So you insulted me because you didn't want me to meet your mother. Tell me, Bella, who were more ashamed of her or me?"

"You misunderstand. Renee is dangerous . . ." I stopped as Edward scoffed. There was no way I could make Edward understand. My eyes began to burn and I knew if it was possible I would be weeping as complete hopeless overwhelmed me.

"I'm sick of this bipolar roller coaster that is Bella Swan. It's giving me whiplash. You know, I'm beginning to doubt that your even adopted. You certainly act psychotic enough to be Renee's daughter."

I cringed from the pain inflected on me by his words. I tore my gaze from his merciless eyes and retreated to the first exit I saw. Once I broke through the doors leading to the outside world, I allowed myself to run at my full speed. I was finally giving up. Edward had broken me and all I wanted was some secluded place where I could lick my wounds.

EPOV

_Fuck!_

I watched Bella's retreating form. All the self-righteous anger that had been building inside of me since Saturday was rapidly being replace with guilt. I fought the urge to go after her and reminded myself that I was vindicated. As I remained standing in the middle of the lunchroom, I became aware that everyone's eyes were glued on me. There attention made me uncomfortable. I look to my usual table for a safe place to hide only to find three amused faces and a single disappointed one. I knew if I sat with my siblings today I would be roasted alive. It appeared the only option left to me was to chase after Bella.

I dropped my tray of food in the trash on my way to the door. I really didn't have any interest in eating right now. It shocked me how difficult it was to find Bella. I expected her to be headed down the path to the parking lot or making her way toward the picnic tables scattered around lawn between the portable classrooms and the forest bordering the school yard but I didn't see anyone. Bella seemed to have vanished so I gave up. Still, I knew I couldn't go back to the lunch room, so I decided to kill time before class by sitting at one of the picnic table. Maybe, I could figure out what I was going to say to Bella during bio.

I was just approaching the table closest to the portables when I saw her. She was sitting on top of the table nearest the forest. It looked like it was about to be swallowed up by the surrounding trees. I couldn't figure out how I missed her walking this way. I should have been right behind her. I didn't make sense, but I was too focused on Bella to puzzle it out. She had wrapped her arms around her legs with her head resting on her knees. Her thick curtain of hair hid her face and she was making this horrible sobbing noise that went straight through my heart.

_Congratulations, jackass, you made her cry. _

I watched her from furthest table, unsure of what to do. I suppose I should apologize. I had never intended to hurt her. The whole thing had gotten out of hand. But her words from Saturday night still linger in my head. They continued to hurt me. I only wanted the pain to stop . . . for both of us.

I weaved my way through the picnic tables until I came to hers. I paused for a moment and then sat down on the table top next to Bella with my feet resting on the bench seat. I continued to watch her, waiting. I knew she was aware of my presence because she had grown quiet but she kept her face hidden behind her knees. I started to reach my hand out to comfort her but then I dropped it because I wasn't positive she wanted my comfort. After an awkward moment, I spoke up. "Sorry . . . for what I said . . . about you and Renee. It was an asshole move . . . and uncalled for . . . and completely untrue. I didn't mean . . ." I trailed off when I realized I was echoing Bella's apology to me.

She must have realized it too because she laughed mirthlessly against her legs. "It seems that now we are even."

"I never wanted to 'get even.' I never meant to hurt you. All I wanted was for this dysfunction between us to end. I wanted us to be over."

She lifted her head up then and meet my gaze. I was almost relieved by the lack of tears but then I caught the deep sadness filling her eyes. "Do you still want us to be over?"

I thought hard about my answer before I spoke.

"Not really. I want us to be friends without hurting each other." I gave her a small smile and she returned it. Both our smiles fell as I added, "But I don't know if that's possible."

"I would like to attempt to a painless friendship with you." After a beat she added, "I do not enjoy hurting you, Edward."

"I don't enjoy hurting you, Bella." She bit her bottom lip and looked up at me with a question in her eyes. Recognizing the question, I nodded my head but even I didn't know if I was agreeing or surrendering. Perhaps, I was doing both. "Let's try a 'painless friendship.'"

The relieved smile Bella gave in response blinded me and I had to smile back.

* * *

I can't say for certain when I'll be able to post the next chapter. I have several research papers and projects due this month. Then exams the first two weeks of next month. Plus, I'm trying to get into a study abroad program, which includes loads of paper work. Once exams are over I should be able to fall back into my routine of posting once a week. Until then, I will post as soon as I possibly can.


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